FIRST PLAY CAIRN PC

From Breath of the Wild to Jusant, gaming has a bit of an obsession with climbing.

But whereas most of these games tend to have rather lenient stamina-based mechanics-and Jusant focused on the chill and meditative qualities of scaling tall structures - Cairn is the opposite.

Don't be fooled by its cel-shaded palette and deceptively simple inputs: this might well be the Dark Souls of alpine climbing games.

As pro climber Aava, you're on a quest to climb the summit of Mount Kami, which no one has ever done before. While you have a little robot assistant, the actual climbing is all on you as you plan your ascent, using all your limbs to reach any hold on your path upwards. These aren't just conveniently marked out for you, since you're free to climb anywhere.

There is, however, no visible stamina gauge to keep an eye on: instead it's all about how you position Aava's arms and legs-and you'll soon notice the stress they're under if they start shaking.